In the national hockey League labor relations: a model of transnational collective bargaining?

The labour relations framework implemented in the National Hockey League sets forth an original model for transnational union representation and collective bargaining. The agreement basically rests upon mutual consent. It is most assuredly a manifestation of "collective autonomy" and provides an eloquent example of "legal pluralism." The negotiation of working conditions is centralized, since this takes place between the owners of the teams and league directors as well as all hockey players employed by any one of the teams. The Collective Bargaining Agreement (CBA) entered into in 2005 is the net result of this multi-owner collective bargaining process governing working conditions for all League players. As such the CBA is contractually binding on several employers-the 30 team league-working in a specific industry-a professional sports league-that carries out its activities on a North American scale. Moreover, the CBA includes a totally new mechanism for determining remuneration to be paid to each and every player by each one of their respective teams : a "salary cap". The binding and legally operative force of the CBA is also secured by mandatory arbitration. In addition, while the CBA imposes significant constraints on the negotiation of individual labour contracts between players and their team, it still leaves place for such decentralized negotiation which is carried out essentially between the team and individual players. The following text presents an overview of the main features of the National Hockey League framework, which raises some interesting questions as regards labour law theory in these times of globalization and growing international trade.